A fun and decorative reception usually follows the beautiful wedding ceremony.  During the reception, people generally, eat, drink, dance, and chat with one another, however a wedding program is created to entertain the guests and to have the guests interact with the newlyweds.  The program can consist of several speeches, sometimes a couple of dances or performances of some type, cultural traditions, cake-cutting, and a TOAST!

Who Makes the Wedding Toast?

A wedding toast is made in honor of the bride and groom.  It can be given by any of the guests at the wedding reception and is usually something short, light, and sometimes funny.  At times, several people choose to make a toast to the couple together, gathering on stage and expressing their feelings towards the beautiful couple and giving a toast in sync with one another.  For example, all the groomsmen, a group of close college friends, or some close cousins.  Traditionally, the toast is not planned by the bride and groom and it’s a surprise by whoever decides to stand up and speak some beautiful words, but nowadays more couples are choosing the person who will make the toast for their wedding reception.  Generally it’s one of the fathers, maid-of-honor, best man, or another close guest.

What to Say in a Wedding Toast

There are many topics that you can discuss in the toast, however the key aspect to a toast compared to a speech is to keep it light and short.  A popular topic is a shortened version of the couple’s love story, a little about how they met, their first date, and then the proposal.  Many people enjoy a little laughter in this type of toast.  Another perspective to take is to welcome the guests, thank them for coming, and discuss soe of the places people have traveled from.  The ending message of the toast usually wishes the couple many years of joy and happiness together with the person toasting raising their glass and asking all the guests to join in on the toast, then to begin sipping on their champagne to commemorate the happy couple.

Enjoy writing your wedding toast for the happy couple, it’s a very memorable part of the wedding reception.  If you choose not to have alcohol at your wedding, this doesn’t mean that you can’t have a great wedding toast.  Serve your guests iced tea, lemonade, or (the most common) apple cider.  Don’t forget to include a wedding toast in your reception program, it’s separate than the speeches and involves all the guests at your wedding reception.  Enjoy toasting to the rest of your lives together!